Gloucestershire Apprenticeship Campaign raises the bar in 2013

A new campaign supported by local businesses and training bodies has recently launched in the Stroud district, encouraging 500 young people to put themselves forward as apprentices. The 2013 Gloucestershire Apprenticeship Campaign, led by GFirst, is happening as a result of last year’s unexpected success. Businesses and employers are encouraged to take on apprentices in a move to minimise the youth unemployment figure. Last year 40 more businesses signed on in addition to the target figure of 100, demonstrating how hiring apprentices is an employment process which can benefit both apprentice and employer.

CEO of GFirst, David Owen, said: “Apprenticeships are vital to the county’s economic growth not only to help our businesses prosper but also to ensure our young people are highly skilled. Gloucestershire businesses have been very supportive of the Gloucestershire Apprenticeship Challenge over the last few years but there is still a lot more to be done and that is why we have set such a high target. Through the work of the LEP, our businesses, schools and young people, we will ensure that Gloucestershire has hundreds of new apprentices so that the county has one of the most employable and economically productive populations in Europe.”